Jan. 9, 2026, 11:01 p.m. ET
ORLANDO, Fla. — Few officials in the NBA draw the love and respect from everybody. Bill Kennedy is one of those few who gets that love and respect from everybody and it was apparent on Friday in Orlando.
Early in Friday’s contest between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Orlando Magic, Kennedy fell in a heap after a non-contact injury. The veteran official was on the ground in pain while the entire Sixers team was around him making sure he was OK and if he needed anything.
Kennedy eventually ended up leaving in a wheelchair and he received some well wishes from coach Nick Nurse as he gave his perspective of what happened.
“I just heard he kind of screamed out, and I saw him kind of grab his leg, and then he screamed again and went down. I don’t know what the final—I don’t know,” Nurse said after the win over the Magic. “It looked like a hamstring to me, but I thought I’d heard some rumblings about Achilles or something at halftime, so let’s hope it’s not that, but it’s too bad.”
There hasn’t been anything official on Kennedy other than it was a right leg injury. Sixers star Joel Embiid, who has seen his fair share of injuries, was one of the guys who got up to check on Kennedy and made sure he was OK.
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“Obviously, anytime you see injuries–I’ve had some of the most unfortunate injuries,” Embiid said afterward. “So, every single time I see someone struggling or getting hurt, that kind of hits me a little bit. I saw it and it was unfortunate. Hopefully, it’s nothing too bad. I’ll be praying for him.”